Incubator



Jan. 16, 1934. E. T. ABENDROTH 1,943,575

INCUBATOR Filed Jan. 25, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR ATTORNEY5.

Jan. 16, 1934. E. T. ABENDROTH INCUBATOR Filed Jan. 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet2 ATTORNEYJ.

Patented Jan. 16, 1934 IN CUBATOR Elmer T. Abendroth, Tipton, Ind.,assignor to The Oakes Manufacturing Company, Inc., Tipton, Ind.

Application January 25, 1932 Serial No. 588,638

8 Claims. (Cl. 11937) This invention relates to an electric incubator,and particularly to the internal structure and means for obtaining theproper distribution of heated air.

The principal object of the invention resides in the employment of a fanassociated with a heating element, air passages and the like, fordrawing the air downwardly and throwing it laterally to obtain theproper distribution of heated air throughout the interior of theincubator.

Another feature of the invention resides in the provision of a removableunit tray support and air deflector whereby said unit including all theegg trays mounted thereon, may be bodily removed from the incubator forcleansing or other purposes.

Whereas heretofore, it has been customary to provide a draft fan at thetop of the incubator for directing the warm air downwardly on the eggsin the trays below, one of the features of this invention is theprovision of a fan in the bottom of the incubator for directing the airlaterally and upwardly about the side walls, and drawing it downwardthrough the egg trays, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth anddescribed.

The full nature of the invention will be more clearly understood fromthe accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the incubator. Fig. 2 is a perspectiveview of the unit tray support. Fig. 3 is a central vertical sectionthrough the incubator taken substantially in the plane 33-33 of Fig. 1.Fig. 4 is a plan view looking down thereon with the top andtraysupporting unit removed.

In the drawings there is shown an incubator having an outer cabinet 10mounted on a frame supported by the legs 11 which are provided with,casters. A door 12 swings open from the front of the cabinet and isprovided with a glass panel or window 13. The top of the cabinet isprovided with side ventilators and the central ventilator 15. The sideventilators comprise the vent holes 16 communicating With the downwardlyextending tubes 17. Said vent holes 18 are adapted to be closed bysuitable sliding plates 14. The ventilator 15 comprises a pair ofnesting conical members pivotally connected for independent rotation at18, said members being provided with a plurality of vent openings 19adapted to register with each other for opening the vent or bepositioned out of registry for closing the same.

Said ventilator is in communication with the tubular member 20 extendingdownwardly through the top of the incubator. The bottom of the cabinetis provided with four small vent openings 21 adjacent each cornerthereof.

Slidably mounted within the cabinet so as to be readily removabletherefrom, there is a unit tray support 22. Said support is providedwith the rear legs 23 and a front panel 24 serving as the front legs.The side and rear walls thereof are provided with rows of vent openings25, the front of said unit being open. On the interior of the sidewalls, there are a plurality of angle bars 26 upon which the trays 27are slidably supported. In the bottom of said unit, there is an opening28 surrounded by a moisture tray 29. Said opening is covered by a screen30 and is in communication with the downwardly projecting collar 31which extends close to the bottom of the cabinet.

Mounted below the unit support upon the bottom of the cabinet, there isan annular electric heating element 32, above which there is mounted arotary fan 33 driven by the motor 34.

At the top of the panel of the cabinet designated at 35, there is theswitch 36, a pilot light 3'7, a thermometer 38 and a thermostatic heatregulator 39. The motor is connected with a suitable source of currentthrough the cable 40 and switch 36, by means of conductors 41 and 43..Said switch is connected to the thermostat through a portion ofconductor 41, and said thermostat is connected to the pilot light 3'?and heating element 32 by a conductor 42. Conductor 43 serves as acommon return line, branches thereof connecting the pilot light, heatingelement and motor to power cable 40. The thermostat operates through awafer diaphragm 44 and contact point 45.

In operation, when the trays are loaded and the cabinet closed, theswitch 36 may be turned on, which will cause the motor to operate andthrough the thermostat connections energize the heating element. Theventilators may be closed whereupon the air in the cabinet will be drawninwardly and downwardly through the perforations 25 and the screenbottoms of the trays,

through the screen 30 in the bottom of the tray I the air will reach thetop of the cabinet and be drawn downwardly therefrom while a portionthereof will pass through the perforations 25 over the trays and theeggs contained therein. A small amount of fresh air will be drawn inthrough the vents 21 in the bottom of the cabinet, depending upon theamount of air leakage which is relatively small.

When the air circulated in this manner throughout the cabinet, reachesthe proper temperature as indicated by the thermometer, the thermostatwill operate to shut off the current passing through the heating elementso as to deenergize the same. The fan, however, will continue thecirculation of air through the egg trays. When desired, the ventilatorsmay be opened, but by means of the tubes 17 and 20, the current of hotair projected against the top of the cabinet will be directed downwardlyin" stead of escaping directly through the ventilators.

By means of this arrangement a steady heat with just the right amount ofmoisture will be evenly and thoroughly distributed throughout the eggchamber of the cabinet without any direct draft on the eggs.

In other words, there will be a general circulation of the heated andproperly moistened air as distinguished from a forced draft of airdirectly impinging upon the eggs in the trays.

The invention claimed is:

1. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a plurality of egg trays,perforated walls embracing and supporting said egg trays one above theother, means for supporting said walls in spaced relation with the wallsof the cabinet, a heating element mounted in said cabinet centrally ofand below the egg trays when in position, a fan intermediate saidheating element and trays, and a motor for driving said fan, said fanbeing constructed and positioned in the cabinet to draw the airdownwardly through said trays and force it laterally over the heatingelement into the space between the cabinet and perforated walls.

2. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a plurality of egg trays,perforated walls embracing and supporting said trays one above theother, means for maintaining said walls in spaced relation with thewalls of the cabinet, a bottom partition separating said trays from thebottom of the cabinet and having a central passageway therein, a supportfor said partition and perforated walls, a heating element, and a fanpositioned adjacent said element and below said passageway for drawingair therethrough from said trays and directing it laterally and upwardlybetween said cabinet and perforated walls.

3. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a plurality of egg trays, ahousing for supporting said trays one above the other having side andrear walls provided with perforations therein and a bottom having acentral opening therethrough, means for supporting said housing inspaced relation to the bottom and walls of the cabinet, a downwardlyprojecting conduit surrounding said opening, a heating element, and afan positioned adjacent said element and below said conduit for drawingair therethrough from said trays and forcing it laterally over saidelement and upwardly between said cabinet and perforated walls fordistribution over said trays.

4. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a plurality of egg trays, ahousing for supporting said trays one above the other having side andrear walls provided with perforations therein and a bottom having acentral opening therethrough, means for supporting said housing inspaced relation to the bottom and walls of the cabinet, a downwardlyprojecting conduit surrounding said opening, a heating element, a fanassociated with said element for drawing air through said conduit fromsaid trays and forcing it over the heating element laterally andupwardly between said housing and cabinet for distribution over saidtrays, and a ventilator tube in the top of said cabinet.

5. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a plurality of egg trays, ahousing for supporting said trays having side and rear walls providedwith perforations therein and a bottom having a central openingtherethrough, a downwardly projecting conduit surrounding said opening,means for supporting said housing in spaced relation with the bottom andwalls of said cabinet, a heating element, and a fan associated with saidheating elementfor drawing air through said conduit from said trays andforcing it over the heating element laterally and upwardly between saidcabinet and housing for distribution over said trays, said cabinethaving vents formed in the bottom thereof.

6. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a traysupporting unit havingbottom, rear and side walls, said walls having apertures therein, meansin said unit for supporting a plurality of trays, means for supportingsaid unit in said cabinet in spaced relation to the walls thereof, and

means mounted below said unit for heating and directing air laterallyand upwardly between the walls of said unit and cabinet for lateral anddownward distribution over said trays.

7. An incubator comprising a cabinet, a traysupporting unit havingbottom, rear and side walls, said walls having apertures therein, meansin said unit for supporting a plurality of trays, means for supportingsaid unit in said cabinet in spaced relation to the walls thereof, aheating element supported in said cabinet below said unit, and a fanassociated therewith for drawing air through the aperture in the bottomof said unit and forcing it laterally and upwardly between the walls ofsaid unit and cabinet.

8. An incubator comprising a box-like portable cabinet, a removable traysupporting unit having an apertured bottom, means for removablysupporting said unit in said cabinet, the walls of the cabinet and unitbeing spaced apart to provide air passages, means in said unit forsupporting a plurality of egg trays, whereby said unit may be bodilyremoved from the cabinet with or without the egg trays supportedtherein, a fan for creating a forced draft of air downwardly throughsaid trays and upwardly between the walls of said unit and. cabinet, anda heating element positioned in the path of the air draft for heatingthe same.

ELMER T. ABENDROTH.

